During play golf players are constantly faced with the problem of selecting a best possible golf club to be used for each stroke. It is well known that the range from the ball to the hole is an important consideration in selecting the best club, but other factors such as the player's skill and personal "fitness" also are important considerations.
It follows that a player, under the strain of attaining a best possible score sometimes misjudges the playing circumstances and selects a club that may not be the best possible selection for the particular circumstances.
Inventors have in the past disclosed devices that are helpful in determining the distance from the ball to the hole. U.S. Pat. No. 5,046,839 shows an electronic range finder that can be used to obtain the distance to the hole by means of a pulsed beam of light directed at the flag in the hole which the player wishes to reach. U.S. Pat. No. 3,868,692 discloses a somewhat similar system, but based on a radio beam directed at the flag.
None of the prior art devices, however, provide the player with a device that is capable of receiving and taking other factors into account, such as the player's experience, skill and personal "fitness", and is capable of issuing a suggestion as to the best possible choice of club to be used for the stroke.
It is accordingly an object of the invention to provide a small, lightweight computing device that a player can bring along and be used to determine the distance to a hole, and is capable of receiving other data in order to determine a best possible selection of a club.